Micro Scooters

The Indian self-drive and car rental industry has come a long way since American duo David Back & Greg Moran founded Zoomcar in Bengaluru in 2012. As the self-drive service enters its sixth year in operation, it aims to bring 20,000 new car subscribers and touch 20 million unique self-driving user mark by the end […]

On a chilly gray February morning, driver Tony Moreno pulled a white BlueLA hatchback into a curbside parking space reserved especially for it on a cramped East Hollywood side street in Los Angeles. He hopped out, grabbed a cord from a dedicated electric charge point on the sidewalk and plugged it into the car. Like […]

While the entire world is getting urbanized at a tremendous speed, Sustainable mobility is a major topic of discussion today. With each passing day, innovations are being made to make transportation easier and achieve the ultimate goal of sustainable mobility. The reasons why we need to redefine sustainable mobility and work towards that goal is […]

I have already written about the cultural shocks I have lived in Taiwan. Those ones are not Taiwanese unique, and they can be noticed in some other countries too. Here you have a list of “Taiwanese habits”:

Dear Mappers, Read today our short summaries from our 360 blog about AI and autonomous mobility. 1. The power of AI The technology has been rapidly evolving by making smarter, more accurate solutions in various fields . Nowadays more often AI Is used for these purposes, to fill in the gaps by genius algorithms that […]

As I mentioned in my last story, Chinese New Year is the biggest holiday of the year in China and Taiwan. As such, it’s ten days long. Most people had time off of work from February 1 – February 10. The first part of my Chinese New Year travels were in Taipei. This holiday can […]

Ride-hail and electric-scooter companies want Americans to use their personal cars less. You know the idea has gone mainstream when even the urban bank robber is choosing shared transit over a private vehicle.
In September 2018, a burglar in Indianapolis, Indiana, used a Bird electric scooter to make off with a man’s wallet, laptop, and backpack. In December, a man in Baltimore, Maryland, stole a cellphone at gunpoint and fled on a Bird scooter. Also in December, a 19-year-old robbed a bank in downtown Austin, Texas, and hopped on one of Uber’s Jump e-scooters to make his getaway. Earlier this month, a bank robber in a suburb of Chicago, Illinois, took a Lyft to the bank, had it wait outside while he committed the robbery, and then took the same car to O’Hare airport.
You can see how shared transit might appeal to the inexperienced criminal: You do the deed and then ride off into anonymity on an electric scooter, a Butch Cassidy for our modern era of micro-mobility. Except it doesn’t really work that way, as the Washington Post reported:
Turning a rental scooter on, as regular users know, requires a rider to use an app that contains their phone number, email address and credit card information. You’ll probably be unsurprised to learn that these are the kinds of personal details that make it easy for police to track down criminals.
Detectives in Austin, after seeing a Jump scooter used as a getaway vehicle in surveillance footage, sent Uber a search warrant requesting geolocation data and user information. The company provided a phone number, email address, and credit card number. Police arrested Luca Mangiarano, 19, and charged him with robbery by threat about a month after his alleged crime. “This was a learning experience for me and the robbery unit,” Austin police detective Jason Chiappardi told the Washington Post. “We had never had a scooter involved in a robbery.”
It took police less than five hours to find and arrest Jonathan Decorah, 43, after he allegedly robbed a bank in a Chicago suburb of nearly $6,000. Decorah took a Lyft to the Ben Franklin Bank of Illinois around 9:30am on Feb. 9. The Lyft, a white car with a ride-sharing sticker, waited outside while Decorah robbed the bank—it’s unclear if the driver knew what was going on—and then took him to the airport after he hopped back in and updated his trip destination to the United Airlines terminal at O’Hare. On the way, Decorah reportedly asked if there were any Chase banks they could stop at. The driver said no.
Oh and then there was this guy:
ROCHELLE PARK, NJ (Gray News) – A man attempting to burgle a New Jersey home fled when he woke the victims, but he didn’t make it far before accidentally getting into a police car instead of the Lyft he had ordered.
These stories border on the absurd, and yet they really happened! Did Mangiarano think Jump wasn’t using the same software he rented the scooter with to track his location? Did Decorah imagine Lyft could be his very own Baby Driver? Shared rides and scooters create an illusion of stealth and anonymity—you may never see the same driver or scooter again—but never forget that they are tracking you. (Related: company-issued Fitbits.) If all our bank robbers traded private vehicles for ride-hail and shared electric scooters, we might never have trouble catching a thief again.
An earlier version of this post appeared in Oversharing, a newsletter about the sharing economy. Sign up for it here.

Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – February 19, 2019) – LOOPShare Ltd. (TSXV: LOOP) (OTC Pink: LPPPF), world’s first fully-integrated electric scooter sharing platform, has announced new safety features for its sit-down Loop™ e-Scooter that it believes will be industry firsts. Figure 1. LOOPShare Technology Making Micro-Mobility Safer To view an enhanced version of Figure 1, […]

The overall look has additionally gotten a redesign and now demonstrates speed, a battery perusing and Lime says it will before long have the capacity to demonstrate a notification message when the bike is as of now in a no-park zone.

Cities today are dynamic urban ecosystems with evolving physical, social and technological infrastructures facilitating, regulating and often constraining the free movement of its inhabitants in crucial ways; how urban mobility is managed can both sustain and transform a city’s socio-economic and cultural capital. Individuals residing or working in these metropolitan contexts increasingly rely on acquired movement sensibilities […]

FIVE people were killed with another five wounded after four gunmen stormed a bar in the city of Cancun in Mexico, just a few miles from popular British tourist resorts.
The attack took place at a club called La Kuka, just three miles away from hotels packed with half-term holidaymakers.
Armed police are patrolling tourist beaches following the shooting
Armed marines are now patrolling some of the popular tourist beaches following the shooting.
Here’s what you need to know about travelling to the holiday destination.
Is it safe to travel to Cancun and other tourist spots in Mexico?
Drug-related violence in Mexico has increased massively in recent years with murders now commonplace.
However, murders in 2018 increased by 33 per cent with 33,341 murder probes opened last year.
Many fatalities are those killed in turf wars between the different gangs competing for trafficking routes into the US.
Cops are trying to protect tourist destinations like Cancun, Playa del Carmen, Cozumel, Los Cabos, Puerto Vallarta, Acapulco and Nuevo Vallarta.
A number of shootings have plagued the tourist resorts in recent years
The murder rate increased by 33 per cent in 2018
Earlier this year, seven men were shot dead at a house part in Cancun after four armed men opened fire.
Last April, gunmen on water scooters shot at a beach vendor in Cancun’s hotel zone although nobody was hurt.
And in August, eight bodies were found after a cartel murder spree – with two of the victims dismembered and found in separate plastic bags.
Despite this, Mexico has recently experienced a tourism boom with 45 million holidaymakers expected to visit this year, more than 500,000 being British tourists, thanks to cheap package holiday deals.
Cancun is popular with British tourists looking for cheap holiday packages
What can I do to stop falling a victim to crime?
The chances of a tourist being murdered are still very slim as most killings are gang related.
However, crime and violence are serious problems in Mexico and the security situation can still pose a risk for foreigners.
You should research your destination thoroughly and only travel during daylight hours when possible.
Monitor local media and inform trusted contacts of your travel plans, advises the UK Foreign Office.
When driving, avoid isolated roads and use toll roads (cuotas) whenever possible.
[boxout headline=”What is the latest FCO advice for Brits?”]Major tourist destinations like Cancun, Playa del Carmen, Cozumel, Los Cabos, Puerto Vallarta and Nuevo Vallarta have mostly not seen the levels of drug-related violence and crime experienced elsewhere in Mexico.
However, since 2017 there have been a number of reported shooting incidents and other incidents of violence in the main tourist destinations, including in locations popular with tourists.
There is currently an increased police presence in the Cancun area, including in the hotel zone.
While tourists have not been the target of such incidents, anyone in the vicinity of an incident could be affected.
[/boxout]
Keep car doors locked and windows closed, especially at traffic lights.
There have been a number of violent carjackings and robberies along the Pacific Highway.
Those travelling in large camper vans or sports utility vehicles (SUVs) have been targeted in the past.
If you suspect you’re being followed or watched, drive to a police station or other safe place.
Be particularly alert on public transport, at airports and in bus stations.
Theft on buses is common so keep an eye on your belongings at all times.
Passengers have also been robbed and assaulted by unlicensed taxi drivers including in Mexico City.
Brits should remain vigilant when travelling the area
Is there any special advice to women travellers?
Women travelling on their own should be particularly alert when travelling on public transport.
There have been incidents of rape on urban buses (micros) on routes in the south of Mexico City.
Most attacks have occurred early in the morning or late at night.
Several serious sexual offences have also occurred in tourist areas outside of Mexico City.
[bc_video video_id=”5749880901001″ account_id=”5067014667001″ player_id=”default” embed=”in-page” padding_top=”56%” autoplay=”” min_width=”0px” max_width=”640px” width=”100%” height=”100%” caption=”How the Mexican resort of Cancun – loved by Brits – has become a murder capital”]
Take care even in areas close to hotels, and especially after dark.
Don’t leave food and drinks unattended in bars and restaurants.
Travellers have been robbed or assaulted after being drugged.
There have also been reports of tainted alcohol causing illness or blackouts.
[article-rail-section title=”Most read in travel” posts_category=”33″ posts_number=”6″ query_type=”popular” /]
A British woman was recently left stranded in Cancun during her 50th birthday trip after falling seriously ill, Sun Online Travel recently reported.
Maxine Howell, from the West Midlands, was left hospitalised after catching pneumonia with her insurer refusing to pay out after not declaring some of her medication.
In 2017, 300 tourists also experienced chaos in Cancun after being struck down with food poisoning across 24 luxury hotels.

FIVE people were killed with another five wounded after four gunmen stormed a bar in the city of Cancun in Mexico, just a few miles from popular British tourist resorts.
The attack took place at a club called La Kuka, just three miles away from hotels packed with half-term holidaymakers.
Armed police are patrolling tourist beaches following the shooting
Armed marines are now patrolling some of the popular tourist beaches following the shooting.
Here’s what you need to know about travelling to the holiday destination.
Is it safe to travel to Cancun and other tourist spots in Mexico?
Drug-related violence in Mexico has increased massively in recent years with murders now commonplace.
However, murders in 2018 increased by 33 per cent with 33,341 murder probes opened last year.
Many fatalities are those killed in turf wars between the different gangs competing for trafficking routes into the US.
Cops are trying to protect tourist destinations like Cancun, Playa del Carmen, Cozumel, Los Cabos, Puerto Vallarta, Acapulco and Nuevo Vallarta.
A number of shootings have plagued the tourist resorts in recent years
The murder rate increased by 33 per cent in 2018
Earlier this year, seven men were shot dead at a house part in Cancun after four armed men opened fire.
Last April, gunmen on water scooters shot at a beach vendor in Cancun’s hotel zone although nobody was hurt.
And in August, eight bodies were found after a cartel murder spree – with two of the victims dismembered and found in separate plastic bags.
Despite this, Mexico has recently experienced a tourism boom with 45 million holidaymakers expected to visit this year, more than 500,000 being British tourists, thanks to cheap package holiday deals.
Cancun is popular with British tourists looking for cheap holiday packages
What can I do to stop falling a victim to crime?
The chances of a tourist being murdered are still very slim as most killings are gang related.
However, crime and violence are serious problems in Mexico and the security situation can still pose a risk for foreigners.
You should research your destination thoroughly and only travel during daylight hours when possible.
Monitor local media and inform trusted contacts of your travel plans, advises the UK Foreign Office.
When driving, avoid isolated roads and use toll roads (cuotas) whenever possible.
[boxout headline=”What is the latest FCO advice for Brits?”]Major tourist destinations like Cancun, Playa del Carmen, Cozumel, Los Cabos, Puerto Vallarta and Nuevo Vallarta have mostly not seen the levels of drug-related violence and crime experienced elsewhere in Mexico.
However, since 2017 there have been a number of reported shooting incidents and other incidents of violence in the main tourist destinations, including in locations popular with tourists.
There is currently an increased police presence in the Cancun area, including in the hotel zone.
While tourists have not been the target of such incidents, anyone in the vicinity of an incident could be affected.
[/boxout]
Keep car doors locked and windows closed, especially at traffic lights.
There have been a number of violent carjackings and robberies along the Pacific Highway.
Those travelling in large camper vans or sports utility vehicles (SUVs) have been targeted in the past.
If you suspect you’re being followed or watched, drive to a police station or other safe place.
Be particularly alert on public transport, at airports and in bus stations.
Theft on buses is common so keep an eye on your belongings at all times.
Passengers have also been robbed and assaulted by unlicensed taxi drivers including in Mexico City.
Brits should remain vigilant when travelling the area
Is there any special advice to women travellers?
Women travelling on their own should be particularly alert when travelling on public transport.
There have been incidents of rape on urban buses (micros) on routes in the south of Mexico City.
Most attacks have occurred early in the morning or late at night.
Several serious sexual offences have also occurred in tourist areas outside of Mexico City.
[bc_video video_id=”5749880901001″ account_id=”5067014667001″ player_id=”default” embed=”in-page” padding_top=”56%” autoplay=”” min_width=”0px” max_width=”640px” width=”100%” height=”100%” caption=”How the Mexican resort of Cancun – loved by Brits – has become a murder capital”]
Take care even in areas close to hotels, and especially after dark.
Don’t leave food and drinks unattended in bars and restaurants.
Travellers have been robbed or assaulted after being drugged.
There have also been reports of tainted alcohol causing illness or blackouts.
[article-rail-section title=”Most read in travel” posts_category=”22″ posts_number=”6″ query_type=”popular” /]
A British woman was recently left stranded in Cancun during her 50th birthday trip after falling seriously ill, Sun Online Travel recently reported.
Maxine Howell, from the West Midlands, was left hospitalised after catching pneumonia with her insurer refusing to pay out after not declaring some of her medication.
In 2017, 300 tourists also experienced chaos in Cancun after being struck down with food poisoning across 24 luxury hotels.